Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Picture life as a trader's journey. The body is like a strong ox carrying a load, and the breath is the precious money we start out with.
But sometimes the load on its back gets stuffed full of endless wanting — and that heavy sack of craving is what we end up carrying from place to place.
This one says life is a journey, and it is easy to load ourselves down with wanting.
Kabir tells a long story about a banjaaraa, a traveling trader. Paap punn du-ay bail bisaahay — with both paap, wrong deeds, and punn, good deeds, the ox is bought. The ox is the body. Everything we do, good and not so good, is part of the ox we ride through life.
Pavan poojee pargaasi-o — pavan, the breath, is the poojee, the money we start out with.
Tarisnaa goon bharee ghat bheetar — and the sack on the ox's back is stuffed with tarisnaa, craving. Think of a school backpack crammed with things you never use, getting heavier every day. It is a gentle picture of how easily we fill our journey with wanting.
What "heavy sack" of wanting might you be carrying that you could set down?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI